Playwright Vuong Lan - The Silent Pioneer

On May 30, in Hanoi, the Vietnam Stage Artists Association in collaboration with the Institute for Research on Preservation and Promotion of National Culture and the family of playwright Vuong Lan organized a workshop called “Playwright Vuong Lan – The Silent Pioneer”. The workshop was attended by many artists of many generations, especially in the field of theater.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, People's Artist Trinh Thi Thuy Mui, Vice President of the Vietnam Union of Literature and Arts Associations, President of the Vietnam Stage Artists Association, affirmed that the seminar is a meaningful activity, a stick of incense to pay tribute to playwright Vuong Lan - who has made many contributions to the Vietnamese revolutionary theater.

Playwright Vuong Lan is a senior distinguished member of the Vietnam Stage Artists Association, a leading author of Vietnamese theater from the late 1950s to 1974. In more than 16 years of creative work from writing the play “Sea Storm” in 1958 to the last play completed right before her death on April 28, 1974, when she was just 45 years old, playwright Vuong Lan had more than 10 plays.

Some documents and artifacts about playwright Vuong Lan on display at the workshop.

His works were staged by the Central People's Drama Troupe, the Southern Drama Troupe, the Hai Phong Drama Troupe, the Quang Ninh Drama Troupe and many other large professional drama troupes as well as other mass art units in the North at that time to serve the people and were warmly welcomed.

He is a pioneer playwright who tackles the theme of workers, building new Vietnamese socialist people and has had great success. He is also a pioneer playwright who tackles the theme of national reconciliation and has immortal plays such as “Hand in Hand” and “For Tomorrow”.

He has been gone for 51 years, but his plays such as “Sea Storm”, “Sea Gate Night”, “Dear One”, “Southern Route”, “Night Ferry”, “Deo Nai Wind”, “Hand in Hand”, “Beyond the Limit” are as if they were just written, full of modern current events. Art units, especially the current drama genre, can all study and restore them to serve today’s contemporary life.

People's Artist Le Chuc speaks at the conference.

Mr. Nguyen The Khoa, Deputy Director of the Institute for Research on Preservation and Promotion of National Culture, Editor-in-Chief of the Vietnam Culture Magazine, commented: Vuong Lan is the first stage author to tackle the theme of workers, deeply attached to the Quang Ninh mining area, Hai Phong port city and the North-South transportation route of the great rear supporting the great frontline in the resistance war against the US. Although there is no big declaration, only quietly working and creating, but in this theme, it can be said that Vuong Lan is a great stage author, a quiet pioneer, has a strong encouraging impact and points out the secret to success for the next generation of stage authors to come to this great theme that is very necessary but also very difficult to succeed.

Mr. Nguyen The Khoa also said that there was a very strange thing that even while suffering the destructive B52 bombings of the US imperialists with the people of Hanoi , Vuong Lan calmly sat down to write the play "Hand in Hand" or "For Tomorrows" about the Vietnamese people on both sides resolving hatred, reconciling with each other, and finding a common future. Under the wings of the B52 bombers dropping thousands of tons of bombs on Hanoi, Vuong Lan still firmly believed that the US imperialists would fail, would have to withdraw completely, Vietnam would completely belong to the Vietnamese people, the winning and losing sides would have to behave humanely, reconcile, and heal each other for a common future of their country and their people.

Delegates pointed out the many contributions of playwright Vuong Lan.

Sharing the same view with Mr. Nguyen The Khoa about the role of “silent pioneer” of playwright Vuong Lan, especially on the subject of workers, many researchers believe that the number of his actual works is much more than what we know. He has made great contributions to the stage in particular, and to literature and art in general.

Associate Professor, Dr. Luu Khanh Tho commented: “Vuong Lan has devoted his whole life to the theme of workers, to building the image of workers in production and combat. In most of his plays, the main characters and positive characters are workers in building and defending the socialist Fatherland. It is a true reflection of the outstanding characteristics of the reality of life that took place in our country at one time. Many old values ​​have been redefined. Drama is where Vuong Lan can express his discoveries and perceptions more directly, where he can contribute more directly and positively to life.”

The workshop was attended by artists of many generations.

Poet Tran Dang Khoa, Vice President of the Vietnam Writers Association, writer Ngo Thao, playwright Le Quy Hien, and People's Artist Le Chuc also proposed that there should be a State Award for the contributions of playwright Vuong Lan. According to People's Artist Le Chuc, playwright Vuong Lan is a respectable person, paving the way for literature and art for the working class, specifically mine workers. He, along with a generation of artists, created the golden age of Vietnamese theater. The silence of playwright Vuong Lan is the silence of great souls and great artists, so that we can awaken today.

Source: https://cand.com.vn/Chuyen-dong-van-hoa/nha-viet-kich-vuong-lan-nguoi-mo-duong-lang-le-i770014/